Fla. Man Wins Acquittal on Charges

Published 8:00 pm, Friday, January 18, 2002

A felon who fired his lawyer and represented himself has been acquitted on murder charges.

Ernest Spann, 35, who has a grade 11 education, was tried three times on murder and burglary charges connected to a 1991 slaying. After deliberating three hours, the jury acquitted him Friday. He had faced life in prison.

"He gambled with his life and he won," said Assistant Public Defender Harvey Hyman, who assisted Spann.

The charges involved the murder of Brenda McKenzie, 35, whose nude body was found in her home in August 1991. She had been shot once in the chest and police say she died in a botched drug rip off.

At Spann's first trial last year, with a lawyer representing him, the judge declared a mistrial when a juror held out for an innocent verdict. Months later, Spann insisted on representing himself and the trial again ended with a hung jury.

The acquittal doesn't mean Spann goes free. He is serving a 131/2-year sentence on cocaine charges and is scheduled for release in December 2008.